Objective To investigate the correlation between carotid artery plaque and blood pressure variability (BPV) in elderly patients with hypertension.Methods One hundred sixty elderly patients with hypertension were divided into plaque and non-plaque groups according to the results of carotid artery ultrasonography.All the patients were measured by ambulatory blood pressure monitoring.The mean blood pressure,mean pulse pressure,and blood pressure variability coefficient of two groups were calculated and compared during whole day,daytime,and nighttime.The related factors of carotid artery plaque were analyzed by multivarite logistic regression analysis.Results The 24 h systolic blood pressure standard deviation,daytime and nighttime of systolic blood pressure standard deviation,daytime diastolic blood pressure standard deviation of plaque group were higher than those of non-plaque group (P ＜ 0.05).The 24 h systolic blood pressure variation (24 h SBPV) and night systolic blood pressure variation (nSBPV) were higher than those of non-plaque group (P ＜0.01).Multivariate regression analysis results showed that carotic artery plaque was associated positively with 24 h BPV and blood pressure variability coefficient of nighttime (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusions The elderly hypertensive patients with carotid artery plaque is associated positively with 24 h systolic blood pressure variability coefficient and blood pressure variability of nighttime.

BACKGROUND:Laser therapy is a non-invasive and painless treatment that is considered to be an effective method suitable for the treatment of osteoarthritis due to its simplicity and non-invasive nature.Currently,the mechanism of action of laser therapy is unclear and the results of studies on its clinical application are controversial. OBJECTIVE:To review and summarize the latest research progress of laser therapy on chondrocytes,animal experiments and clinical efficacy,and to explore the possible mechanism of laser-mediated multi-pathway biological effects,so as to provide a theoretical basis for further research on the laser treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee joint. METHODS:A literature search was performed in CNKI,WanFang Data,VIP and PubMed databases for relevant literature published from 2018 to 2023,with"laser therapy,low level laser therapy,high level laser therapy,photobiomodulation,knee osteoarthritis,chondrocytes"as the search terms in Chinese and English,respectively.Together with 14 articles searched manually,70 articles were finally included for review. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Laser therapy in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis is mainly categorized into two types:low-level laser therapy and high-level laser therapy.Differences in laser parameters and treatment protocols have a direct impact on laser efficacy.When appropriate parameters are used,low-level lasers show positive effects in cellular experiments,animal models,and clinical efficacy.High-level lasers have been less studied in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis,but some preliminary clinical studies have shown positive results.Cell experiments have shown that low-level laser promotes chondrocyte proliferation and cartilage matrix synthesis,thereby reducing inflammatory response.Animal experiments have shown that low-level laser can reduce the release of pro-inflammatory factors,promote cartilage matrix synthesis,inhibit matrix degradation,and effectively improve the repair process of cartilage tissue.Low-level laser is also able to reduce oxidative stress damage and relieve pain in knee osteoarthritis.In clinical trials,both low-and high-level laser can reduce patients'pain and improve functional activities.The combination of laser therapy and exercise therapy modalities may improve the therapeutic effect.Lasers may affect intracellular signaling and cellular functions through photobiological or thermodynamic effects.This provides direct evidence that laser promotes articular cartilage regeneration.